Abstract

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Fish cultivation in a controlled environment has been found to be influenced by microbial contamination. This study was aimed at assessing the bacteriological qualities of three types of fish ponds in the three Senatorial districts in Edo State, Nigeria. The study was carried out between January, 2017 and December, 2017. The bacteriological analyses were carried out using standard microbiological techniques, antibiotics sensitivity test was carried out using the disk diffusion methods, while the DNA extraction and sequencing were done using standard molecular biology techniques. The total heterotrophic bacterial counts ranged from 34.77 ± 4.17 x 106 cfu/ml – 75.22 ± 5.3 x 106 cfu/ml. The total coliform counts ranged from 31.88 ± 3.76 x 106 cfu/ml -78.88 ± 4.29 x 106 cfu/ml. The isolates were identified to include; Klebsiella pneumoniae, Streptococcuss pasteurianus, Acinetobacter nosocomialis, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Serratia marcescens, Citrobacter freundii, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus sciuri. The bacterial isolates had multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index values greater than the permissible limit of 0.2 against cetriazone, augmentin (Amoxicillin clavulonate), ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, cloxacillin, erythromycin, ofloxacin, ranicef and nitrofurantoin. The bacterial contamination of fish ponds intended for human consumption may constitute an impending danger not only in causing disease, but could act as reservoirs of antibiotic resistance organisms leading to treatment failure when improperly cooked fish is consumed. It is therefore, important to understand the microflora associated with fish culture environment and recommended that, adequate public health measures are put in place for the regulatory guidelines for the construction of fish ponds.

Keywords: Aquaculture, Antibiotics susceptibility, Bacteriological, Fish Ponds, Water